The present invention is related generally to the field of food items that are reheatable in a toaster and, more particularly, to a product, that may include a filling, wherein the overall product is well suited for reheating from a refrigerated or frozen state. An associated method is also described.
Food products, which may be prepared by heating in a toaster, have become increasingly popular for reasons including convenience and swift preparation in a fast paced society. Products, which are currently produced and designed for reheating in a toaster, include sliced bread, pancakes, French toast and waffles. With the exception of certain problems to be described, such products can generally be reheated from a frozen state with an acceptable result. Unfortunately, it is submitted that the prior art has addressed these problems in ways that are, at best, only moderately effective and which sometimes produce additional problems including, but not limited to degradation of taste and eating characteristics, as compared to a fresh product, not requiring a toaster for reheating.
It is initially noted that toasters are, in fact, not particularly well suited to the task of reheating products. That is, a toaster is designed to broil items, as opposed to merely reheating them. As an example, one of the major problems with French toast products resides in preserving the desired grilled characteristics of the product. Once the product is initially prepared by grilling, additional browning as the product is reheated in a toasting environment is not desirable and is likely to result in over-browning. Loss of grilled characteristics, as a result of additional browning, is generally a problem with respect to attempting to reheat grilled products in a toaster. Moreover, burning represents another problem wherein the outer surfaces of the item being reheated are burned prior to warming the center of the product. Burning is characteristic of light breads and batters since their very “lightness” serves to inhibit heat penetration, thereby causing burning as a result of heat accumulation at the surface. The problem is further aggravated with increasing product thickness or fillings since longer heating times are needed to warm the product interior.
The latter problem is of particular concern with respect to filled products and is of even more concern in the case of reheating a frozen filled product. Also, in an upright toaster, fillings are of concern with regard to leaking out of an encapsulating material such as a sandwich. Oily or fatty fillings further represent a fire hazard in the event of leakage coming into contact with the heating grid surface in the toaster. The prior art, in attempting to provide fillings in toaster reheatable products, has resorted to a low moisture pastry surrounding a relatively small amount of low moisture filling. The low moisture filling is generally resistant to leaking from the pastry shell.
To cope with the concern of sufficiently heating the filling while avoiding burning of the surrounding shell, prior art toaster reheatable products, especially frozen products, are generally thin, for example, on the order of one-half inch or less. Non-grilled products are designed to resist burning due to an outer crust that includes a high fat content or is fat soaked, which is also intended to allow for sufficient heating of the interior prior to product burning. In certain cases, products are pre-fried to insure sufficient fat levels to expedite the reheating process. That is, a sufficient amount of fat permeating the crust serves as an expedient in heat conduction to the filling material. Unfortunately, soaking the outer extents of a grilled product with fat sufficient to conduct heat in this manner results in a soggy, unpalatable product. That is, the organoleptic characteristics of the grilled product are, for practical purposes, completely destroyed by this attempt to achieve toaster compatibility.
Grilled products can be reheated in a microwave; however, the microwave dramatically changes the eating characteristics of the bread as well as the texture of the grilled surface. During microwave reheating the grilled product tends to develop a soggy surface in place of its original crisp surface, compromising its taste and eating characteristics. One solution seen in the prior art resides in the use of a metallized sleeve during microwaving. While the sleeve can help restore some of the grilled characteristics to the surface when microwaving, the results are unlike a freshly made grilled product.
The present invention provides a highly advantageous coating and associated method, which is capable of producing a wide array of products, including grilled products, to resolve the foregoing problems and concerns while providing still further advantages.